1997 Southern Fandom Confederation Handbook & History
The Apocrypha

{The article presented here is more-or-less as it first appeared in print in The Southern Fandom Confederation Bulletin Vol. 7, No. 3, April, 1999, Julie Wall, Editor. Laura Haywood maintains a more complete and up-to-date version on her web site, at http://www.unc.edu/~lghaywoo/chimeraarchive/history/sfhist.html}

{This article came about because of an error Laura found in the online version of the SFC Handbook (http://www.hsv.tis.net/~ssmith/sfc/index.html). This is the second part of the article, the first having appeared in Volume 7, #2 of the Bulletin. Toni Weisskopf pleads with other fans to check out the Handbook and send corrections. If you find any, you can send them to her, or Sam Smith, who graciously maintains the site and has his address there, or to me in care of the Bulletin. I would also welcome articles from fans in other areas on the history of fandom there. jw}

This complete text of this article (and updates) can be found on the web at http://www.unc.edu/~lghaywoo/chimeraarchive/history/sfhist.html

Corrections or additions are encouraged:

History of Other Groups at UNC and the Triangle Area

The Guardians of Light & Time. Chuck Andrews, founder of The Guardians of Light and Time, talks about GoLT's origin and demise.

Chuck's sister who was stationed in England briefly during the 1970s alerted him to a British show called Dr. Who. When the local public television station began showing episodes, he tuned in for a few and at first thought it was "really really stupid." For lack of anything else on TV after school he continued to watch it and eventually grew accustomed to the British sense of humor - he was hooked.

"Chimera and the Guardians of Light and Time were both children of the older UNC Science Fiction/Fantasy Club. Both, in a sense, germinated at that club's Halloween party initiated by Dan Reid in October, 1981.

"In the fall of 1981, I enrolled at UNC-CH. After I signed Dan's interest list for the UNC Science Fiction/Fantasy Club, Dan called to tell me of the club's Halloween/Costume party. Although I did not dress up as a 'Who' character, I did bring along a box of Who photos and memorabilia. Carolyn (Waterson) Wallace, dressed as the Doctor, and Anne (Worth) Sayer, as Sarah Jane Smith were immediately interested, though they were terrified of me (the costume, I hope)."

Chuck realized that there were several groups across the campus who watched the show, and he decided to try and bring them all together for a party.

"The Guardians of Light and Time was born at the (first) '749th Birthday for the Doctor' held at 7 PM on Friday, November 20th, 1981 in Room 220 of the Student Union. I expected about 20 attendees, but more than 50 showed up.

"We filled the small room and spilled out into the hallway. It was all very campy and lots of fun. We 'officially' organized at the next meeting on January 22, 1982. This was the Friday night of the VERY bad ice storm (the worst winter storm in this part of NC in the 1980's). I was expecting around 50 people, but more than 100 showed. Some had driven through the storm from as far away as East Carolina University (in Greenville NC, about 2 hours' drive under ideal road conditions). Unbelievable. At this meeting, I was elected Chairman, while Carolyn Waterson, Kevin Council, Boyd Faulkner, Rex Moody and Leick Robinson were elected Vice Chairpersons. By the way, every vote ever held by the Guardian membership during its first year was unanimous -- the people were that caught up in the moment.

Like most organizations, the Guardians began a slow slide into irrelevance, inaction, repetition and purposelessness as the years went by. At the end of her term as Chairperson in 1984, Diane Whitworth (who, herself, was in no way irrelevant or inactive) presented for consideration the name of a person to replace her in '85. Before the (now small) group of attendees was given the opportunity to vote, I made a very fiery speech suggesting that instead of voting for a new slate of officers, we instead vote to euthanize the dying group. Following an hour of impassioned pleading, the group finally decided to follow my advice. The Guardians of Light and Time, unanimously, although reluctantly, voted to disband that night (late spring, 1984).

"The final event under the Guardians name was the '5th Annual 749th Birthday Party' which I threw on November 22, 1986. A very small group attended, we toasted the old times, and so ended an era."

The UNC Gaming Club (this group was eventually subsumed into Chimera, or as some people see it, took over Chimera - depending on who you ask). Information courtesy of Fred Petrick, first President of the Gaming Club:

"There was an active D&D Club on campus during my first year at UNC ('84-'85). During the summer of '86, Carl Buehler, who was the NC RPGA president for several years, and I came up with the idea of using the D&D Club to sponsor a gaming con on campus. Relations between Chimera and the D&D Club were strained at best, I think because the D&D Club hadn't been allowed to run gaming at a ChimeraCon before my time. However, the D&D Club had lost its recognition as an official student organization. Thus, we started the Gaming Club.

"The basic idea was to get a weekly place for people to game. We drew up a constitution and various policies, decided on officers. I was president because I was a student, Carl wasn't. Michael Weaver, a grad student in history at the time, was also an officer -- vice president, I think. We plastered the campus with flyers announcing the first (weeknight) meeting.

"That meeting was almost a disaster. I started talking about gaming resources around Chapel Hill and quickly realized that nobody cared to hear me talk. Luckily, Michael suggested a game. Someone broke out Illuminati, and away we went. After that, we confined meetings to Sunday afternoon gatherings in the Student Union."

In 1989 and 1990, the Gaming Club ran their own mini-con on the UNC campus. It was called Ourcon, for reasons unknown to me. After Carl left, the Gaming Club fell into disarray, and most of the gamers either joined up with Chimera or didn't bother.

Other Miscellaneous Groups. During part of my time at UNC-Chapel Hill (1986-90), there was a comic book club on campus, and a few years after I graduated a Star Wars club formed. I don't know the fate of either of these two student organizations, although neither appears to exist at the moment.

Thanks to Bud Webster, who forwarded me D. Gary Grady's name and email address, I've gotten a few more pieces of the Triangle fandom puzzle. As already noted in the NC section of the SFC Handbook & History, Gary mentions the active comics fandom in Durham in the late 1960s and early 1970s, "thanks to the brothers Edwin and Terry Murray, who for a while held surprisingly well-attended quarterly sf/comics conventions in their parents' home on Chapel Hill Road, complete with films and a Dealers' room."

Additionally, Gary briefly mentioned the Nameless Order of R'leh in Raleigh, which as he recalls, "was Scott Whiteside and a few others; a typical meeting had about 4 people."

Silvercon

Silvercon took place in Asheville at the Hilton Hotel (now the Holiday Inn Resort) in November of 1988. While not directly a Chapel Hill or Triangle event, it's an example of the generosity of the fans of North Carolina and beyond. This information is courtesy of Nicky Rea, long-time Asheville resident and freelance writer for White Wolf, TSR/Wizards of the Coast and Holistic Design (Fading Suns):

"Silvercon was conceived and organized by the members of the Alternate Realities science fiction club (now non-existent) as a way of raising money for Frances Wellman, Manly Wade Wellman's widow. The Wellmans were friends of a club member -- Ralph Roberts, a local writer and now a local publisher (World Comm) and he wanted to do something to help out Mrs. Wellman, who was in dire financial straits after her husband's death from complications due to diabetes.

"Some of the organizers were, in no particular order, Ralph Roberts; John Baumgarten, the owner of a gaming, comics and music store which was then called Record Survival and is now called Pastimes; Nicky Rea; Jackie Cassada, a library worker who was/is the sf columnist for Library Journal and now freelances for White Wolf and Holistic Design; Carla Hollar, a library worker (now in library school) who is currently helping compile the Dragonlance index for TSR/Wizards; Jeff Brittain, now a local DJ for WZLS and a long-time sf fan and trivia expert; his former wife Jackie Brittain; Jim Crabtree, a freelance artist who has worked for TSR/Wizards, White Wolf, Chaosium, and a bunch of other game companies; and some other people whose names I no longer remember.

"Guests included Ralph Roberts; Milton Ready (a history professor and Appalachian literature and history expert); Rembert Parker, the author of a large number of tournaments for the RPGA; the artist Mary Hanson Roberts; and others.

"Harlan Ellison was invited to the con and, although he couldn't make it, he was kind enough to write a long letter for the con to auction off; TSR artist Jeff Easley contributed an original drawing for the auction as well. As far as I can remember, there were about 100 people at the con and we raised around $1200 for Frances Wellman."

The Wellmans had a vacation home in the mountains and lived in Chapel Hill for over 30 years (Frances Wellman still lives here). They were very well-regarded; according to those who knew Manly, he was not only a talented writer but a kind man and always a friend to Chimera. I regret that I didn't arrive at UNC in time to meet him.

UNC-Greensboro's Club and Convention

Since one of the errors I wanted to correct was an apparent confusion of UNC-G's Science Fiction Fantasy Federation/StellarCon and UNC-CH's Chimera/ChimeraCon, I asked the folks at UNC-G to send me information about the SF3 and StellarCon. I hope it clears up any lingering unintentional misinformation about the two schools and their respective clubs and conventions:

The Science Fiction Fantasy Federation (SF3) of UNC-Greensboro, copyright Tera Pitts, SF3 Public Relations Officer

"SF3 began in 1975 as the Star Trek Club. It soon became apparent that they needed to expand their horizons to include other forms of SF and Fantasy so they changed the name and the constitution was recognized in Fall 1976. Organized by Denise Descouzis, SF3 is designed as an outlet for those interested Fantasy, Science Fiction, Comic Books, and Cinema...basically anything that in some way, shape, or form relates to the genre. The Student Government of UNCG sponsors the club, but meetings are open to anyone.

"On March 20, 1976, SF3 held the first StellarCon as a one-day mini convention whose main guest was Jack Townsend, then the president of the Walter Koenig Fan Club. Since then StellarCon has grown to a 3-day event whose guests have included Walter Koenig, author Larry Niven, as well as many others! The conventions were held on the campus of UNCG until StellarCon 16 in 1992 when Jeff Smith, the convention manager that year, took it off campus for the first time to a local hotel.

"StellarCon 23 will take place March 19-21, 1999 at the Holiday Inn in High Point.

"SF3 has organized other conventions through the years including Hexacon, Anothercon and LepraCon.

"As well as sponsoring films, speakers and trips, the club also organizes its own literary magazine, Beyond the Third Planet.

"For more information, check out the Science Fiction Fantasy Federation website."

The Research Triangle Science Fiction Society and Trinoc*coN

The Research Triangle Science Fiction Society was founded in August of 1997 as a discussion forum and social outlet for Triangle-wide fans of speculative fiction in all its forms: print, TV, and movies, as well as for related activities such as RPGs. We have grown from a core group of 4 (the original Benevolent Dictators of RTSFS: myself, Dan Reid, Paul Cory and Larry Iversen) to having over 20 dues-paying members, with even more showing up for meetings and participating on the email list, which has 75 subscribers.

RTSFS doesn't have a traditional club 'zine; most of what would be found in one is either on the website or the discussion list (book and movie reviews, con reports). We are looking for ways to expand our membership to those who don't have email access and suggestions would be most welcome.

We meet twice monthly; in the past year we have had book discussions, guest speakers, an astronomy night, local authors' panels, cookouts, potlucks, and movie nights, to name a few. Membership is open to everyone; dues are $10/year. Officers are: President - Laura Haywood, Vice President - Ron Olson, Treasurer - Judy Bemis, Secretary - Janice Webb.

Research Triangle Science Fiction Society
Ronolson@hotmain.com
c/o Ron Olson, Vice President
PO Box 90821
Raleigh, NC 27675
(919) 933-7909

Trinoc*coN is a fan-run, non-profit organization working to put on a speculative fiction convention in the Triangle area in late September, 2000. It was founded on March 7, 1998 by Leigh Martin and myself, with support from RTSFS, Black Rose Productions, the Revisionaries, individuals from the SCA, Raleigh Creative Costumes, HobbyMasters, Cerebral Hobbies, Foundation's Edge and more.

The name came about because we wanted something that reflected the Triangle area of the state (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill). "Tricon" had been used for several years by a gaming con on the NC State campus, so we couldn't call ourselves that. We settled on Trinoc*coN and received permission from Larry Niven to use the name "Trinoc", so we got both the "Tri" of Triangle to reflect our geographic location, AND it's a literary reference - can't beat that, huh? We've run several well-attended and successful fundraisers in our short nine months of existence, and we cheerfully accept ideas, volunteers, monetary donations, and chocolate.

Trinoc*coN
Seanpatfan@aol.com
Sean Patrick Fannon, Con Chair
PO Box 10633
Raleigh, NC 27605-0633
(919) 250-0344

Other Fan Groups and Resources in the Triangle and Beyond

I encourage those of you with Web access to check out the Links section of the RTSFS website at: http://www.sandbaggers.com/rtsfs/links.html

For those of you without web access, I'm appending here the list of organizations and stores; they span the state from Asheville in the west to Fayetteville in the east. Where possible I've provided a phone number or address so folks without computers can get more information. If you call, please use common sense and don't call after 9 PM. Let me also point out that while there are a large number of Starfleet groups listed, bear in mind that oftentimes these groups have other sf interests in addition to the Star Trek universe -- ditto for some of the gaming groups. If I've left off a group or store, or the contact information is incorrect, please tell me - I want this list to be a useful resource. Besides, new information will give me something to write about next time.

Asheboro
Comics Conspiracy (comics store)

IKV Black Dragon (Klingon Assault Group)
USS Dark Star (Starfleet): P.O. Box 1820 Liberty, NC 27298

Asheville
Hollow Hills Productions: 62B North Lexington Avenue, Asheville, NC 28801 (White Wolf/World of Darkness LARP)
Lin Digs the Book: (828) 236-0669 (bookstore specializing in used and out-of-print books, publisher of a Chelsea Quinn Yarbro newsletter)
Pastimes (formerly Record Survival): (828) 253-0506 (gaming & comics store)
Super Anime Club of Doom (UNC-Asheville's anime club)
USS Alaric (Starfleet): P.O. Box 2072 Asheville, NC 28802

Burlington
CJ's Comics & Cards: 2044 South Church Street, Burlington NC (comics & cards). Featuring Anime Matinees.

Chapel Hill
Cerebral Hobbies: (919) 929-0021 (games & supplies)
Second Foundation: (919) 967-4439 (sf/f/horror/comics store)

Carrboro
The NC Writers' Network: P.O. Box 954 Carrboro, NC 27510

Charlotte
All Purpose Cultural Charlotte Anime Trade Corps
Charlotte Gaming Society
Heroes Aren't Hard to Find: (704) 375-7463 (comics and gaming store)
Rom's Bar: c/o C.D. Peters, 5016 Lakecrest Drive, Charlotte, NC 28215
UNCC Japanese Animation & Manga Society
UNCC Sci-fi & Fantasy Guild: c/o SGA Office, UNCC Campus, Charlotte NC 28223
Underground Games: (704) 543-7400 (games & supplies)
USS Hornet (Starfleet): P.O. Box 8283, Charlotte, NC 28203-8283

Cullowhee
Western Carolina University Japanese Anime Society (WCU's anime club)

Durham
Books Do Furnish A Room: (919) 286-1076 (used books, large sf selection, used comics)
Dragon Crest (919) 598-0444 (fantasy live-action role playing)
DukAnime (Duke University's anime club)
Duke Role-playing & Gaming Organization: Box 95960 Durham, NC 27708-5960
IKV Glory Hunter (KAG)

Fayetteville
USS Starward Fury (Starfleet): P.O. Box 0681, Spring Lake, NC 28390-0681

Gastonia
Guild for the Advancement of More Enlightened Recreation: Box 668133, Charlotte, NC, 28266

Greensboro
Acme Comics: (336) 855-0217
Cosmic Castle: (336) 854-8844 (anime, new books, gaming store)
IKV Storm Bringer (KAG)
Parts Unknown: (336) 272-7060 (comics store)
Science Fiction Fantasy Federation: Box 4, Elliott University Center, UNC-G, Greensboro, NC 27412
USS Bonaventure (Starfleet): 2227 C. Shadow Valley Rd., High Point, NC 27265
VampCat Productions (Vampire LARP)

Greenville
ECU School of Anything Goes Anime: 109 Mendenhall Student Center, ECU, Greenville NC 27858-4353

Raleigh
Capitol Comics: (919) 832-4600
Foundation's Edge: (919) 832-0044 (sf/f/horror/comics/videos/gaming/music/T-shirts/anime/CCGs)
Games Galore: (919) 781-GAME (games and supplies)
Gothic Candles: (919) 834-2037 after 5 PM only please. (Fantasy-themed candles, dragon and gryphon wood puzzles, and more.)
HobbyMasters: (919) 870-1121 (gaming, miniatures)
Revisionaries: (919) 934-2037 after 5 PM only please. (Writers' workshop exclusively for fantasy, sf, and horror. There is a membership cap; call to see if there are currently any openings.)
Triangle Area Anime Society
Triangle By Night (Black Rose Productions): 5910-129 Duraleigh Road #123, Raleigh, NC 27612
USS Kitty Hawk (Starfleet): PO Box 52112, Raleigh NC 27612-2112

Stedman
USS Merrimac (Starfleet): 6729 Tennis Dr., Stedman NC 28391

Statesville
Carolina Gaming Society: Todd Smart, 128 Signal Hill Dr #102, Statesville NC 28625 (RPGA Network Club for NC & SC)

Wilmington
AnimEigo: PO Box 989, Wilmington NC, 28402-0989 (Small company in Wilmington. Since 1989, AnimEigo has been dedicated to releasing the finest in Japanese Animation, properly translated, and lovingly subtitled and dubbed in English for the benefit of fans and the Japanese-language impaired.)

Winston-Salem
Hobby Town: (336) 774-2324 (games and supplies)
Pair-A-Dice Games: (336) 723-7247 (games and supplies)
USS Hawkeye (Starfleet): 4108 Landerwood Ct., Greensboro NC, 27405